Foot arch



Oct. 16, 1923.

G. V. M. BERTHET FOOT ARCH Filed Nov. 30. 1921 INVENTOR Z ,W M

ATTORNEY Patented Get. 16, 1923.

GEORGES VALENTIN MAR-IE 'BERTHET, OF PARIS, FRANCE.

roor ARCH.

Application filed November 30, 1921. Serial No. 518,960. I

To all to from it many concern Be it known that I, GEORGES VALENTIN MARIE BERTHET, citizen of the French Bepublic, residing at Paris, Department of the Seine, in France, and having P. 0. address Rue de la Bienfaisance, in the said city, have invented certain new and useful I1nprovements in Foot Arches; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and

1H exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to an orthopedic apparatus giving a support to the arch of a flat foot, and this in a better and more proper way than it has been done till now with the existing apparatus of this type.

The known foot-arch supports are more or less faulty in some points; if made in one piece they are resilient only longitudinally, cross way the resilience is nil. In order to make them resilient both ways it is necessary to make them in two or more pieces, they are consequently more complicated and the cost of making is increased considerably. Besides most of these supports have a tend-- ency to displace the foot from the inner side to the external one, this causes deformations and a continuous fatigue of the fifth toe.

The orthopedic apparatus made according to the invention corrects all these faults. It is resilient, both ways, and made in one piece being simple to make and consequently cheap. Besides its shape tends to displace the foot towards the inside and so relieve the fifth toe.

The accompanying drawing shows:

Figure 1 a longitudinal section of an example of foot arch made according to the invention.

Figure 2 a plan of same.

- Figure 3 a section through the anterior part of the foot-arch on line A A of Figure 2.

The foot-arch indicated is made for the right foot, the heel being on the left of the figure and the toes on the right. i

It is made in one piece cut in a steel sheet, stamped and tempered. The arch proper is shown in 1, preferably there is a rib 2 extending longitudinally of the same that tends to stiffen the arch somewhat, but

the toes.

the effect of this is to make the apparatus resilient cross. way. The combination of a plain arch with a wing having a hole cut through is one of the most essential fea tures of the invention.

Another feature of the foot-arch is the special stamped shape given to the anterior part of it. i

It is shown, Figures 2 and 3, that the, edge 5, of the anterior part followsthe shape of the line passing through the articulations of An extension 6 tends to slightlv raise the fifth toe, while the internal part 7 is slightly inclined downwards. The result of this special shape is to displace the foot towards the inward side and to relieve the small toe.

Claims:

1. A foot-arch support formed of a single narrow longitudinally arched part, a broad anterior part including a lateral extension on the inner side thereof and a projection on the forward outer side of the same, and a wing flared upwardly from the'inner side of thearched part and to the rear of the lateral extension of the anterior part.

' piece of spring sheet metal comprising a 2. A foot-arch support formed of a single piece of spring sheet metal comprising a narrow longitudinally arched part a broad anter1or part including a lateral extension on the inner side thereof anda projection on the forward outer side of the same; saidan terior part being slightly declined toward the side edge of the lateral extension and said projection being slightly inclined up wardly toward its forward edge, and a wing flared upwardly from the inner side of the arched part and to the rear of the lateral extension of the anterior part, the metal of the support being cut away between the arched part andthe wing to lessen the resistance to the bending action of the arched part.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

GEORGES VALENTIN MARIE BERTHET. 

